Forum topic: Research level

also this means no one can have a superb part as if you part is rated excellent and you develop it the research would drop down from superb to excellent meaning it wont improve??!!!

I'm still scratching my head over this one, can we meet a parts potential if the research level is a lower value?

I see it as this, but I may be wrong:

Potential is belief in what your designers believe the part can do, research is the knowledge to do it.

I'm not sure how this applies to new parts though (as opposed to upgrades)

"Ok - Frank can you clarify this for me - If i have a part that has a potential of Superb and rating of good, but the reasearch level is very good then if i develop the part it won't improve as the research level will drop down to the same as the part 'good' and unless i can improve the research to superb it wont get any better?"

Okay, I am not Frank but I understand the research aspect to similar to Pitwall star system of developing potential but due to the fact that Frank has implement the favoring our old part means we have parts with +2 or higher rating in potential. These parts are already completed as you say with an Superb potential or at the time a superb research level meaning you have (had) a higher research level last season when this part was created. This means you can develop this part until it's full potential so it will reach Superb.

The research feature is potential of a part from a revolutionary design aspect but Frank has made it so that even when you complete an evolutionary design the potential drops so that every time you develop a part your focus need to be on that part more as players have been creating multiple parts and simple selecting the best one of say 3 parts developed with no penalty.

So now we have a penalty for developing multiple parts at one given time; can still be done but now need to increase the research level every time we build a new part.

"I'm still scratching my head over this one, can we meet a parts potential if the research level is a lower value?"

Yes, since the parts potential is already locked when the part was created so as long as you continue to focus on this part it will reach it's development but before you can develop a new part then you will need to increase the research levels to increase the potential of your new parts.

So if you have an all superb part currently then you really don't need or want to develop since it will take a long time to push your research back to superb level if ever.

Frank, Can confirm this but this is how I see the research feature working.

ok that makes sense but yes can frank please clarify

Anybody think testing of parts should imporve your research level? Would be realistic right?

Yes, I think that would be good...

But in testing weeks only?

Yeah testing only

Perhaps with limits as well, or a reduced improvement the more laps that you do (similar to testing part improvement in PW1, only with research level)

I thought that Frank already said laps add to research level